Coast to coast in the U.S.

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mr west
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Coast to coast in the U.S.

#1

Post by mr west »

So finally it´s happening....

All of a sudden the stars lined up and a distant dream about crossing the US on two wheels is started to become reality. Sitting in a local restaurant in Varanasi, India this winter my idea was encouraged to actually do this ride by fellow sitar student, Amanda, who happen to live in NY. I was thinking that OK, maybe it would be possible for 2017, so all preparations could be made... but when I heard that a band I sometimes play with, were booked for a festival in Las Vegas late August, that air tickets Stockholm-New York, and then LA-Stockholm were really cheap, and that Amanda would actually have the time to join for the ride this summer, It had me thinking that now is the time! And I got a plane ticket for next week to spend a little less than a month in the US.

I have a great advantage in my travel partner, very easy going and she has checked everything about Insurance, road assistance and paperwork... and being a serious sitar player too, she is also crazy enough to go through with this trip carrying our special travel sitars on the luggage rack, so that we will not miss the daily practise!

Hopefully this will also give me oppurtunity to meet up with other practisioners of Indian classical music in NY, to see sights I up until now only seen in movies, and get a feel of the most influencial country in the world and meet its people... I also hope to meet my oldest aunt who emigrated to work in hotels in Las Vegas, back in the 50´s. Must be in her mid 80´s now. I have never met her... Neither did I see any of my cousins, or their children that now are spread out across the country...

So in order to get across the country on a reliable bike within budget, that is familiar, comfortable and in style, the hunt for a good Goldwing began on Craigslist. After me emailing back and forth with a few sellers, and Amanda calling them she managed to bring friends with bike linceses and have a look on a few of them.... A ratty 79 was disregarded... A good looking 81 model was tempting...

....but yesterday she pulled the trigger on a beautiful, newly renovated 79 model with a Vetter fairing! About all systems have been renovated on this bike. Once I arrive it seems all I will need to do is to bleed the front brake and fit a new front tire. I really hope the "to-do" list stays short, but who knows with an unknown bike? All we have is a few days to find out, before its time ride off into the horizon....
Last edited by mr west on Sat Aug 06, 2016 4:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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mr west
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#2

Post by mr west »

Previous owner delivering the bike in NY..
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1976 GL1000
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#3

Post by CYBORG »

looks like a good bike for the trip
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#4

Post by Whiskerfish »

Looks like a great start! Where in NY is your starting point??
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#5

Post by mr west »

Starting out from Brooklyn...
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#6

Post by Whiskerfish »

Cool. Keep us in the loop!!
"Agreement is not a requirement for Respect" CDR Michael Smith USN (Ret) 2017
"The book is wrong, this whole Conclusion is Fallacious" River Tam
2008 GL1800 IIIA "TH3DOG"
1975/6/7/8/9 Arthur Fulmer Dressed Road bike
1975 Naked Noisy and Nasty in town bike
and a whole garage full of possibilities!!

Psst. oh and by the way CHANGE YOUR BELTS!!!!
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#7

Post by 5speed »

tag
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#8

Post by Brant »

Post lots of pics !
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#9

Post by TNTbefree »

Wow. Talk about throwing a plan together and running with it. That looks like a very nice bike and that the PO kept it up nice. So you're flying into NY and out of LA. And you have a month to do this... With that much time, you could do a zig-zag across America. New York- Fl. Keys - St. Paul. Mn - Seattle Wa- LA Cal. No time to stop, but it would be a heck of a ride.

Also, What happens to the bike at the end?
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#10

Post by mr west »

Well checking my calender now its actually only going to about two weeks on the road before Psycho Festival in Las Vegas starts... If I would like to make it there and appear as guest artist with the band, that is. And it would be cool. Lots of great bands, and Alice Cooper is coming too...haha! So no time for zig-zaging in that case.

I guess there us just no way to see it all, but I do like to include some great riding and leave the biggest highways a bit.

But working hard now before leaving, I just didnt have the time to check the map yet, so everything has to come together in a more....organic kind of way... Guess we'll sort it out when I arrive in NY. Turns out Amanda went the distance by car. And just met up with some people that did it on bike..

But still, thinking about it Im still in the dark about most things this trip:

Unknown country -never been in the US. Is it like the movies? Will there be a fight everytime I enter one of those bars you see with all the pick up trucks outside? Will I get shot? Arrested?

Unknown bike -will i get away with just letting a guy i never met testdrive a bike on the other side of the world, getting some messages in mobile they bought it and then hit road and be fine?

Unknown route -how far is it really? Something like 4500 kms by land i think, but what happens when you leave highway... Our country house is like two hours from here, but for me it always takes something like 6 hours by bike... By that logic maybe this two week ride to Vegas will take 6 weeks...

Unknown travel partner -Sure its been a lot of messaging back and forth about practical stuff, but I actually only seen her in person all in all for a few days. She told me that sometimes she just snaps at people.. An image of us standing by a broken down bike in the middle of Death Valley, having a huge fight, at the same time my flight is leaving comes to mind... I guess I need to be nice!

...and what happens to the bike in LA?
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#11

Post by TNTbefree »

Do you ship the bike home or does your friend take it back to NY?
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#12

Post by 77Gowing »

mr west wrote: Is it like the movies? Will there be a fight everytime I enter one of those bars you see with all the pick up trucks outside? Will I get shot? Arrested?
You are not likely to see a fight much less be in one, unless you misbehave. I used to have a room mate from Bombay India, and his family in India thought there was a murder happening around every corner. But how could they not draw that conclusion because so much of our media is about crime in the streets etc. I have lived all my 61 years here in the USA and have never seen a murder or a shooting etc. Yes it does happen, but remember media likes to make everything sensationalized.

Best of luck on your trip, I hope you have a great time. action1 action1 action1

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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#13

Post by Whiskerfish »

Generally so long as you do not wear any colors on your jacket most bikers will be very friendly. If you pull up someplace and there is a bunch of chopped out V-Twin types with jackets and vests with multi piece patches on the back then use caution. Different patch setups (1 ,2,3 piece etc) and numbers on the jacket all mean different things. 1 percenters are out there but not widespread. Most bars you walk into and they hear your accent and you will be a celebrity not a threat.
"Agreement is not a requirement for Respect" CDR Michael Smith USN (Ret) 2017
"The book is wrong, this whole Conclusion is Fallacious" River Tam
2008 GL1800 IIIA "TH3DOG"
1975/6/7/8/9 Arthur Fulmer Dressed Road bike
1975 Naked Noisy and Nasty in town bike
and a whole garage full of possibilities!!

Psst. oh and by the way CHANGE YOUR BELTS!!!!
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mr west
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#14

Post by mr west »

Haha! Yeah I know that reality and media are different things... It was a bit on the joking side, because growing up with american movies, it seems that everytime a guy walks into a bar, "Hank" or someone attacks him and then the fight with the pool sticks starts...

I´m Swedish by the way...

Have to think about what to do with the bike after... sell it? ship it? stash it somewhere?
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mr west
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Re: Coast to coast in the U.S.

#15

Post by mr west »

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I need a quiet helmet. Out riding the swedish countryside the other day experimenting with extra padding around the ears... Seems my head shape lets air up by the ears in most helmet. Maybe it will be a non problem with the fairing...?
1976 GL1000
1979 GL1000 Vetter
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